Three Letter Word
by Lady Isis
Summary: When does a harmless bet become something more? Where do the lines of love and lust cross over? Who would have known a simple three letter word could cause so much trouble?


Standardized Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Full Summary: Kagome Higurashi wasn't known for taking risk. Sesshoumaru Taisho wasn't known for dropping his guard. When does a harmless bet become something more? Where do the lines of lust and love cross over? Who would have known a simple three letter word could cause so much trouble?

October 28th

Present Day

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The stoic figure walked silently down the standardized polished white tiled office floor. The sleek black leather shoes reflected the florescent light that was fixated tightly into the plastered ceiling. The expensive black suite was a stark contrast to the snowy white hair that was pulled back into a smooth pony tail. Everything about the man, from the gold Rolex that adorned his wrist to the smooth black velvet suite that covered his god-like body, demanded respect, veneration and even submissiveness. Women wanted to have this man. Men wanted to be this man. From day one in succeeding to take over his late father's company, Sesshoumaru Taishou knew he was unattainable.

It was hopeless for any woman to think that they actually would mean more to the stoic man than an empty smirk and possibly a one-night stand. To him, woman were nothing but an object to use at ones pleasure before discarding as if they were nothing more than last weeks paper. Thoughts of romance and everlasting love were nothing but empty words and ideas. Romance was what a man performed when he wanted sex. Everlasting love were nothing but empty words that a man would whisper in a woman's ear when he wanted sex. The same principle applied to the female sex as well.

There was no need to sugar coat the statement that women only desired Mr. Taishou for his wealth, status, and looks. The god-like man had come to an early acceptance of this at a young age and soon saw how it would continuously work in his favor. When a woman smiled or laughed at a 'clever' statement or joke, she was silently asking for more attention. When a woman cried over her 'shattered heart', she was silently mourning over the loss of her recent method of income. Yes, the female sex was just as deceiving as the male. Perhaps that is why they coincide so perfectly. Feeding off one another's greed made perfect sense to him. After all, wasn't that what happened with her?

A mental hiss smashed through the sense of his brain. Buried emotions constricted around his ice cold heart, forcing him out of those thoughts. She was nothing more than a whore to him. They had used each other for their own greed yes, but she took it too far. That Cunt played him. His thin lips twisted into a silent snarl as memories of the past two months flooded through his mind, circling around his brain to a point where he almost felt dizzy. Even now he could still smell the soothing fragrance from her shampoo, the soft sound of her laughter. Even now.. She still intoxicated him.

"Mr. Tashio?" came a soft voice that quickly snapped the impassive man out of his memories.

Silence was the reply as golden eyes gazed downward at the petite woman. Shoulder length silver hair was pushed back in a half pony-tail to keep the locks from falling in her face. Chocolate brown eyes that borderline the color black, blinked a few times at the man. A small stack of vanilla folders covered her small arms, the weight being shuffled back and forth between each arm. Kanna Haruka was, in fact, the only employee who had managed to remain on the Taishou staff for almost five years. Always had she been the personal secretary of Touga Taisho since her graduation of college. The late man recognized the woman's devotion to work and loyalty to her employer. From time to time in his own adolescence, Sesshoumaru couldn't help but notice the silent woman who held her tongue when necessary, but still spoke her own opinion when required. Yes, she was indeed a valued and irreplaceable employee to the company.

Seeing that the tall male's gaze was his response, the silver haired woman cleared her throat. "Mr. Takeda Nobunaga called about an hour ago. He said that he'd have to cancel the grand opening of his new section in the museum due to personal reasons. Which means," She then took a moment to shuffle a few folders once more, "that you are completely free for tonight. Although if you want, I can arrange some of your morning clients to meet with you to -"

"That is not needed, Ms. Haruka." Sesshoumaru interrupted coldly.

The woman nodded once, knowing that there was no need for her to say anything else to the man. "That's all then." She stated while straightening her shoulders lightly, stretching the stiff muscles. Although she enjoyed working for Taisho Corp., the job was still stressful to the mind and body. Hours of arranging phone calls, potential clients just begging to arrange any sort of a meeting with the infamous Taisho, not to mention dealing with the paparazzi - even more so than on the usual basis. _Who would have thought one woman could have caused so much trouble?_ She thought with a sigh while watching the man walk towards his office. For many years, an old joke had circulated around the office when it concerned the late Tashio's eldest son. Although Kanna didn't know the direct details of said joke, she did know that it revolved around his heart being as colder than the North Pole in the middle of winter. And after meeting the man for the first time as her employer, she couldn't have agreed more. That is - until he met her.

News of his late fling spread around the city like wild fire. Questions of how long this one would stick around and was she truly only in the relationship for his money were on the tip of everyone's tongue in the office. Was the Sesshoumaru actually falling in love with her? Was she falling in love with him? Three months were an awful long time to exclusively see one another in the public's eye. For a while it seemed that the ladder accusations as well as many others were true, but then again… appearances were always deceiving. _Just when you think that the Ice King has grown a heart, he proves you wrong._ The younger woman sighed and shook her head once more time. What her boss did in his own time was his own business.

Her eyes widened slightly as she watched her boss open the large oak door that lead to his office. There was one slight note that she had forgotten to mention to the male. Clearing her throat, Kanna quickly turned around. Deciding that it was best to take her exit as soon as possible, the young woman dropped off the folders at her desk and smiled politely at one of the other employees. "If Mr. Tashio ask, I took an early lunch." She muttered before striding quickly towards the golden elevator doors.

The instant Sesshoumaru Taisho entered into his office, he knew something was out of place. His golden eyes gazed swiftly over the luxurious room in an attempt to locate the disturbance of his office. Stopping his eyes at the center of his leather chair, taking note of how the tall back was facing him, the man growled softly. I'll have to make a note to discuss with Kanna about her little habit of allowing people into my office without notifying me first. "What are you doing here?" He almost snarled.

"What do you think, Asshole?" was the gruff reply of an all too familiar male's voice. "I've got a delivery for you."

"The next time you want to send something to my office, _Half-ling_, just FedEx it. I do not want your stench lingering on my interior. Now get out of my chair."

"I have a name, Dickhead. Why don't you try using it?" The sitting male snarled.

"Says the man who uses vulgar nicknames when addressing someone."

The man chuckled while spinning the chair slowly so that he was facing the prestigious man. Amber eyes that had a strong resemblance to his own golden ones glared at him. While Sesshoumaru kept his hair pulled back into a pony tail, the other male allowed his own silver locks to fall wild and untamed on his toned shoulders. Except for a few differences in facial appeal, it was quite obvious that the two men were related. "Now, now, Sesshy, that's no way to talk to your half brother." He cooed sarcastically, his lips forming into a silent scowl.

"If all you've done here is to come and show your ass, you've accomplished your mission. Now get out of my office, _Inuyasha_." the older brother's face held it's icy façade, his tone remained calm, but his eyes showed nothing but the promise of pain and suffering if his half brother did not abide to his wishes.

"All right. All right," the man named Inuyasha said while he exited himself from the leather chair. "Here." he muttered, throwing a small envelope on top of a pile of papers on the large desk. "Before you get all excited, this isn't from me."

Raising a brow, Sesshoumaru slowly strolled behind his desk. In his trademark graceful motion, the man took his usual seat and leaned back against the fine leather. "Then who is it from?" He growled, being in no mood to fool with his half brother and his constant nonsense.

"You know who it's from." Inuyasha muttered, slipping his hands into his faded jeans and casting his amber eyes towards the ground.

The stoic man felt every nerve in his body stand on end while gazing over towards the letter. There was no mistaking the fine cursive that was written on a plain white envelope. The blue words addressed only to him. His throat suddenly felt dry and his palms began to become sweaty. Flashes of the raven haired woman surged through his mind like before, scaring his senses and leaving him longing for more. "She gave this to you?" He said, his voice barely above a whisper.

Inuyasha nodded, "This morning."

The warmer half, if one would call it that, demanded that he ripped open the fine paper and read what she had to say. This was the half that Sesshoumaru forced to keep buried within the depths of his mind. His weaker side. His other side, the dominate half that was known to the world - giving him the title of a heartless man, wanted to crumble the tear the envelope to shreds and throw it away. This woman had already burned him once, he would not allow her to do it again. Not through physical actions, not through verbal words, and especially not through written ones. And yet… he still couldn't find the strength to do either.

Sensing his brothers current predicament, Inuyasha sighed. "You know, it's not like she's going to call to ask if you read it or not. Do what you want." He shrugged, slowly making his way towards the door. "But… it wouldn't hurt to hear her out." Having those final words spoken, Inuyasha silently exited the room.

Not once did the stoic man remove his eyes from the standardized envelope. He wanted to read what she had to say, but then he didn't. He didn't want to feel that strange pain in his chest again. He didn't want to undergo the depressive wave of emotions that had overruled his commonsense, but he wanted to. He wanted to know what she had to say. He wanted to know if she underwent the same pain as he had.

Seconds melted into minutes. And minutes felt as if they were starting to fade into hours. "You're a grown man," He coached silently. "Just read the damn thing and then throw it away." Leaving his words at that, the man almost tenderly picked up the letter. In a smooth motion, one side of the envelope was ripped open and tossed into a nearby garbage can. The letter had been folded into fours. The exposed part reading his name once more.

Realizing that he had been holding his breath, Sesshoumaru growled at his own reaction. Deciding to end this once and for all, the male quickly unfolded the letter, his eyes gazing over each hand written word:

_ Dear Sesshoumaru,_

_ Please realize that I do not regret my actions over the past three months. After all they lead me to you…._

A loud buzz sounded through the intercom of his phone. Dropping the letter, the man snarled and quickly answered. "What?"

"Mr. Taisho?" a timid intern squeaked, "Your two o'clock meeting is here."

Taking one quick gaze towards the letter, Sesshoumaru replied, "Send them in." Swiftly he refolded the letter and slipped it into the top drawer of his desk. After all, there were more important things beside Kagome Higurashi - or so he would have liked to believe.

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A/N: And that's it. The first chapter. Not much to say except this is my first Inuyasha fan fiction. The chapters will be longer in the future, but this was all I could put without revealing too much of the plot. Enjoy and thank you for reading.


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